Many fans erupted in excitement when Johnny Gargano returned to WWE last summer. Upon his resurgence, Gargano also received a promotion to the main roster, assigned to the RAW brand.
Since his return, “Johnny Wrestling” has found himself generally floating between opponents, with his only substantial feud stemming from a storyline involving Dexter Lumis and The Miz. In February, Gargano punched his ticket to the Elimination Chamber, securing himself a shot at the United States Championship. Unfortunately, Gargano championship aspirations would be squandered as he was eliminated second from the six-man Chamber match.
Gargano soon bounced back with wins over Otis and Finn Balor, before making a surprise visit to WWE NXT to resolve some unfinished business with Grayson Waller. As Gargano now prepares for his match at NXT Stand & Deliver, he is poised to maintain his appearances on RAW as well.
The Future Of Johnny Wrestling
During an interview on Busted Open Radio, Johnny Gargano spoke candidly about his time on the main roster so far. While some fans may have hoped for more out of his run, Gargano remains optimistic toward his future on RAW.
“You know how things go, man, you make the most out of the time you’re given. You make the most out of your opportunities. I feel like I had a huge opportunity in the Elimination Chamber match, and I feel like I showed out in that one. I feel like I was able to get there with a guy that I feel is probably the standard bearer on our industry right now. Seth Rollins, I think he is the tippy top of the mountain. He’s where I want to be, and I hung toe to toe with him. I showed the world that I can hang with him. So it’s one of those things where it’s all about time. It’s all about patience,” he said.
“I know a lot of people don’t want to be patient. They want it now. They want me to go out there and have 30-minute matches, 25-minute matches, do my ‘Takeover’ thing. It takes time, it takes equity. It takes getting this other audience that maybe doesn’t know about me — these random casual fans we talk about all the time in these buildings that quite frankly, I haven’t been in before.”
“A lot of these markets I’ve never wrestled in and they’re seeing me for the very first time. This whole past, I’d say six months, I’ve wrestled in so many markets I’ve never been in before because NXT did the main markets, they did the main hardcore wrestling towns and like tonight we’re in Providence, Rhode Island, which is Rhode Island’s a great town. We had a couple indies here as well, but I do feel like it’s just time. It’s equity, as you know. It’s putting your time in making the most out of the time you’re given, and that’s all you can do.”
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article, please credit with an h/t to SEScoops for the transcription.